In November 2020, US climber Emily Harrington, 34, took on El Capitan—a 3000 foot(914 meters) rock formation(岩层) in Yosemite National Park, US. She accomplished her feat within a day and became the first woman to free-climb the Golden Gate route.

It used to take weeks for rock climbers to reach the top of El Capitan, even with the help of a partner and climbing aids. In recent years, only three people—all men—had free-climbed the Golden Gate route on El Capitan in 24 hours, according to CNN.

Although rock climbing has long been dominated by men, the number of female climbers has been rising in recent years. Even in the pandemic, many of them have made great achievements and pushed human limits.

"I spent a lot of years feeling like I didn't belong, like maybe I hadn't earned my place to be a Yosemite climber," she told the San Francisco Chronicle. "But throughout this experience I learned that there is no belonging or not belonging, no formula to achievement up there. "

The rising number of female climbing enthusiasts should come as no surprise. According to the website Climbing. com. "Climbing is one of the few sports where it's possible to level the playing field. Women's flexibility helps offset anything we may lack in strength, bridging the gap between the sexes. "

Legendary Austrian climber Angela Eiter is another strong female figure in the climbing world. In 2020 Eiter made news as she climbed the unknown face she calls Madame Ching in her home country.

According to the New York Post, the route was free of traces. That means Eiter has to search for the holds and predict how the moves were going to play out by herself. Worse still, the rock there is really fragile and some holds had to be fixed with glue. But after intensive indoor training to visualize(构思) the route and build up her strength, Eiter, who stands 154 cm high and weighs 46 kg, made it.

"I am not the strongest woman and I am very small, and I am happy that I can show other women that they can also do it," she told the New York Post.

As Climbing. com noted, this battle with oneself embodies(体现) the spirit behind the sport. "Maybe that's why more women feel more empowered to find their own way, break free of the mold(模式) and climb what we want to climb. Women have decided to follow their hearts. "

A week ago, "Sports for Life" programme was sent to the parents, requiring them to select a sport that they wanted their child to play. Since then, our staff have received lots of calls from parents asking for more information about it. Here is a memo (备忘录) for your reference when you answer the phones.

 Sport 1: Basketball.  

 We expect that this will be the most popular of the four sports. Therefore, students should be advised to sign up as soon as possible. Students will take a private bus to and from the Kwun Tong Sports Park. To cover the cost of hiring a bus, each student will have to pay $10 each time. There will be four basketball courts with one teacher monitoring each game.  

 Sport 2: Gym.  

We will be using the St. Peter's Memorial Park. There are two reasons for choosing this park. First, it is not very busy and crowded before 6:00 pm. Second, it has a lot of trees with plenty of shade. Students must bring along two bottles of water to prevent thirst. Three activities — skipping, jogging, and outdoor aerobics (有氧运动) are all free of charge. And there will be a teacher on duty for each of the activities.

 Sport 3: Hiking.  

 Hiking will take place at the Kowloon Peak. The activity will start at 2:30 pm and finish 90 minutes later. Three teachers will accompany the students, and a hiking instructor will accompany each group of 15 hikers. Each instructor will cost $75 per hour. Students are advised to bring plenty of water and sunscreen.  

 Sport 4: Swimming.  

 The Kowloon City Aquatic Centre is a 10-minute walk from our school. Four teachers will go to the pool and conduct the students from the poolside. We will only be able to reserve the pool for one hour (2:45 pm to 3:45 pm). Only students skillful at swimming can take up this activity. The pool will have two lifeguards present. Girls must wear a swimming suit. The cost is $10 per visit.  

Rural Patagonia is famous for its wonderful nature. A Google search for "bicycle tour Patagonia" led my friend Rachel and me to the Carretera Austral: a 770-mile stretch of mostly unpaved highway. We packed our bikes into hoxes and flew to Puerto Montt, a port city some 650 miles south of Santiago. From there, we continued south for several days and set foot on the Carretera.

It took about two weeks to cycle the route through wild forests, windswept plains, and snow-capped mountains. On our last full day along the Carretera-and three days into a constant rainstorm-we found ourselves at a loss for where to sleep. We were cold and wet.

We were still 30 miles from Villa O'Higgins, which marked the end of the Carretera and the promise of a hot shower. From there, we'd ride about 600 miles further along somewhat better roads to Ushuaia.

There was no way we were going to make O'Higgins by nightfall. We hadn't passed a nice campsite in hours. We'd just stopped beside a small stream when we spotted a cowboy-looking man walking out of the trees. And we saw that the stream led to a small house.

The man came to the road. "Do you know a dry place to camp?" Rachel asked. The man invited us into his home. We shared hot chocolate and conversation in his warm. rough kitchen. He brought out an old copy of Patagon Journal, and we were amazed to see a photo of our host, Erasmo Betancourt, on the cover. It turns out that our new friend was a well-known cowboy-turned-activist who had been an outspoken opponent of the damming (筑坝) of Patagonia's rivers. In recent decades, local farmers, fishermen, and conservationists have fiercely resisted the construction of hydroelectric(使用水力发电的) dams on the region' s mighty rivers. Our adventure wouldn't have been possible if not for their fierce love of this beautiful land and devotion to its protection.

The next morning, we thanked our host and hit the road. Is there anywhere on Earth so remote that one cannot encounter humanity?